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The first-ever nationwide Fight for $15 convention will be held next week in Richmond, Virginia. Low-wage workers will call attention to economic and racial justice issues, including "the enduring effects of slavery on black workers." Progress Illinois talked with a Chicago worker who plans to attend the two-day event.

The following was written by Keith Kelleher, president of SEIU* Healthcare Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Kansas.

Last week, working people won a long overdue victory when the Supreme Court decided to let stand a new federal rule that prevents homecare employers from denying their workers minimum wage or overtime pay. The decision will help bring to an end a nearly 80-year policy of discrimination against more than 2 million workers who take care of our nation's elderly and people with disabilities.

It should also serve as a wake-up-call for Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, who is trying to bully thousands of working women of color who care for our state's elderly and people with disabilities into a deal that would deny them the ability to care for their own families.

The Fair Market Rent (FMR) price for a two-bedroom unit in Illinois is $1,039, up from $977 last year. That means Illinois renters must now earn $19.98 per hour, or at least $41,567 annually, to afford a two-bedroom apartment without paying more than 30 percent of their income on housing.

Overall, Illinois has the nation's 16th most expensive two-bedroom housing wage. Nationally, the average wage necessary to afford a modest, two-bedroom rental is $20.30.